Family
by vahanian
Summary: Which was why when Sam approached him about two months after the Battle of Rose Creek and told him that the rest of them were going to stick together, he panicked. Or where Faraday has a secret and he leaves before the others find out. Shame they won't let him.


Which was why when Sam approached him about two months after the Battle of Rose Creek and told him that the rest of them where going to stick together, he panicked.

Or where Faraday has a secret and he leaves before the others find out. Shame they won't let him.

Faraday had been alone for most of his life.

The first time someone had left him was his father. He was six years old, and he remembered his father leaving, the man was a mean drunk, and didn't bother to hide his temper, so he wasn't really sorry when he left.

The next time someone left he was sorry. This time it was his mother and she hadn't wanted to go. She had fought to stay by his side right up until she had died. He was ten years old and alone.

When he was twenty he made the mistake of trusting some cowboys he had met on the trail, and he spent the next four weeks regretting his choice. They had decided that they had liked the look of him and because he had trusted them, he hadn't even seen it coming when they had hit him over the head and tied him up. When he had woken up a few hours later, he was at their ranch and at their mercy. It would be four weeks before he managed to escape. He vowed there and then as he watched the ranch burn, and the cowboys with it, that never again would he trust anyone.

He spent the next ten years by himself and he turned away from people. He didn't mind relieving people of their money or going to whatever brothel he could find in whatever town he was passing through, but anything more than that and he wasn't very good at it. Which was why when Sam approached him about two months after the Battle of Rose Creek and told him that the rest of them where going to stick together, he panicked.

When Faraday awoke after nearly blowing himself to kingdom come, he couldn't quite believe that he was alive.

"I'm alive!" he asked incredulously after he finally found his voice. He turned his head to the right to see Vasquez sat in a chair next to his bed, absently clearing his guns.

"Not for lack of trying, eh guero." Vasquez replied putting down his cloth, and turning to face Faraday fully.

"Did we lose anyone?" he wasn't really sure he wanted to know the answer, but he needed to ask.

"No, but we nearly lost Goody and Billy before you managed to destroy the Gatling gun. The church caught fire and they just made it out before the roof collapsed. The only one who nearly died, was you guero." Vasquez said somewhat sternly.

"Are you angry at me?" asked Faraday.

"Si, you just took off without a plan, and didn't tell us what you were thinking. You didn't wait for us to back you up. It was lucky that Goody and Billy spotted you and were able to cover you a little." Vasquez said.

"Look, there wasn't any time to make a plan, they were reloading the Gatling gun, I only had a small window to act. I can look after myself, I've been doing it for a long time and I don't need anyone else's help." Faraday shouted at him.

"Whoa, what's going on in here?" asked Goody from the door.

"Nothing." Vasquez replied as he stood up and walk out of the door, not once looking back at Faraday.

Goody turned to look back at Faraday from where he had been watching Vasquez.

"I see our surly Mexican has finally told you about his displeasure in your plan. Or lack thereof?" said Goody as he walked into the room and sat down heavily in the chair that Vasquez had just vacated.

"Not you too." Groaned Faraday sinking further into the bed.

"While I could have done without seeing you racing towards your death, watching you get shot and not to mention you being blown up, I know why you did it and you saved Billy's and my life, to say nothing of everyone else, so I thank you." Said Goody as he grasped Faraday's hand from where it had fallen on top of the bedcovers. "But that being said, we are a team and a team should rely on each other, you should have waited for us to help you." He finished sternly.

"I can look after myself." Said Faraday harshly.

"I know you can but now you don't need to, you have us to help." Said Goody.

He stood up and stretched, "I better get back before Billy comes looking for me, just think on what we have said." He walked through the door and pushed it slowly shut behind him.

Faraday was bored, it had been two months since the Battle, and his injuries were almost healed up. All the injuries apart from his leg that was, the doctor said that he would always have a permanent limp, but considering how badly it could have gone, it seemed a small price to pay. He was bored because everyone else was off helping with the repairs, and he was stuck not helping, because Sam and Vasquez had said that he was still recovering and not to over exert himself. They must have also told the townsfolk not to let him help, because every time he asked they turned him politely away.

He was sat on the boardwalk in front of the hardware store because his leg had given out and decided it didn't want to go any further, when he spotted Sam walking over to him.

"What you doing, Faraday?" asked Sam once he was level with him. He sat down next to him on the boardwalk.

"Just taking in the sights." Said Faraday cheerfully.

Sam gave him a look, as if he knew why he was really sat there, but didn't want to call him out on it.

"So I was talking to the others last night, and we all thought that it would be a good idea if we all stuck together. I mean we all enjoy each other's company and we know we work well together." Said Sam as he ran a hand slowly over the back of his neck, looking uncomfortable.

"Are you asking me to go with you?" Faraday couldn't keep the tone of surprise out of his voice.

"Yeah, I guess we are, it wouldn't be the same without you." Sam replied.

"Look Sam that's a real generous offer and all, but I don't think it will work out." Said Faraday quickly as he stumbled to his feet. He wobbled for a few seconds as his leg threatened to give way under him, but he didn't miss the way that Sam move his leg so it was braced against his to stop him from falling over.

"Don't do anything now, why don't you think on it?" said Sam only standing up once he was sure that Faraday was going to fall over.

"Okay sure, I'll do that." Said Faraday as he walked away quickly.

"The good Lord hates a liar son." Said Sam quietly as he watched Faraday walk away.

"How could I let myself be taken in again?" Faraday thought angrily to himself as he picked up the saddle to place on Jack. He promised himself that no matter what happened in his life, he would never trust anybody again. But at some point during the ride to Rose Creek, the preparations, as well as the Battle, he had begun to trust the men he was working with. He couldn't help it. A small part of him had wanted to connect with someone, he had been alone for a long time. These men seemed honourable, they had gone to help people fight a battle that was not their own after all. Bad men didn't do that. He needed to get away before they ask him questions that he wasn't prepared to answer or before he got in to deep.

"Come on Jack, we're leaving." Said Faraday as he limped alongside Jack as he led him out of the stable.

Jack danced a little as Faraday climbed his way slowly onto his back, but once he was in the saddle he clicked his tongue, and horse and rider raced out of Rose Creek without a backwards glance.

Faraday rode solidly for most of the day, only stopping when the sun started to set and he was forced to stop to make a camp. He climbed slowly down off Jack and pressed his head against his flank, as he waited for his leg to stop screaming. When it felt like he could move without passing out, he shakily walked around Jack to grab his saddlebags, only to find the space where they usually sat was empty.

"Oh shit." In his rush to leave Rose Creek, he had forgotten to grab his saddlebags. Which meant he had no food, water or clean clothes. At least he had Ethel and Maria, his cards and a bit of money tucked away into his boot. He would have to wait until the next town to buy some food.

After making sure that Jack was all set Faraday sank to the ground with a loud groan, massaging his leg to try and work out the knots in the muscles.

"I think we over did it today Jack." Called Faraday.

Jack snorted and tossed his head as if agreeing with his owner. Without his flint and matches he wouldn't be able to light a fire, and he knew it got pretty cold out in the desert at night. He led down on the ground, he head resting on his saddle, and fell asleep.

Faraday awoke slowly, expecting to find himself cold and stiff, so he was a little surprised to find himself under a blanket. He was warm and there was a fire roaring not too far away from him.

He pushed himself into a seated position and looked around. Sat around the fire, looking like they had been there for a while where the six other peacekeepers talking quietly and laughing with each other.

"Hey you're awake guero." Said Vasquez as he looked over.

"How are you feeling?" asked Goody as they all turned to look at him.

Faraday just stared at them, blinking slowly as if trying to determine if they were real.

"Wow, I think that's the longest you've ever gone without talking." Joked Sam.

"What are you guys doing here? How did you even find me?" Faraday asked slightly confused.

Apparently taking pity on him, Goody said, "Well Red was keeping an eye on things back in town, and he saw you race out of there like you were being chased. He told Sam, who told us. We noticed you didn't take your saddlebags with you, and once we heard about the conversation you had with Sam, we put two and two together and figured you might have been feeling a little overwhelmed, so we came to find you."

"What all of you?" said Faraday weakly.

"You are part of the team." Said Red in English. Usually he spoke in Comanche, but sometimes when he felt something was important enough he would use English so that they could all understand.

"What if I don't want to be part of the team?" Faraday asked as he slowly got to his feet. Once he was upright, he staggered a little. Vasquez and Goody both looked like they wanted to help, but a slight shake of Sam's head kept them both in the seats.

"Look man, we can't force you to stay with us if you want to leave, but I think you should hear us out before you make your decision." Sam looked at him, and Faraday could only see honesty in his eyes that he reluctantly agreed.

"Alright, I'll hear you out." Faraday moved to sit on a large stone that was jutting out of the ground.

"After you nearly blew yourself up, we found you lying in the field. We thought you were dead, but by some miracle you survived, it was touch and go and we needed to get you back to the hospital. When we got you there the Doctor ripped your shirt to get access to the bullet holes, and son, we saw the brand." Said Sam quietly.

Faraday froze in place, the last words running through his head, _we saw the brand we saw the brand._ They know. Faraday stood up quickly causing the other six to jump slightly.

"Now hold on a minute." Goody reached out to try and grab his arm but he side stepped out of the way.

"How did you even know what the brand was?" asked Faraday confused. There was only three people who should know what the brand meant and two of them were dead, and like hell did Faraday ever mention it.

"I'm a bounty hunter." Sam replied simply. "I was chasing their bounties because they had killed over ten men. They always branded their victims. Then one day they vanished, I found their bodies six weeks later in a burnt out ranch." Sam gave him a look when he said that as if he knew that it was Faraday who had killed them.

He had to leave, these men knew his secret. They would be judging him for something that he couldn't control. Whenever anybody saw the brand they looked at him differently, it was why he always chose to keep his shirt on even in the summer.

Faraday moved to pick up his saddle ignoring the voices around him. He nearly succeed when a hand on his arm caused him to jump and drop the saddle.

"Guero, we do not care about your past, we only care that you survived it. You are still the same man who saved all those people he didn't know." Vasquez still had his hand on Faraday's arm but he made no effort to move it.

"I did a lot of things in the war that I am not proud of." Goody said as he moved forward to stand next to them.

"I have killed a lot of people." Billy said simply.

"I took in bounties that may not have been guilty." Said Sam.

"The point guero, is that we still went on, and you must too."

"Why would you want me to stay with you?" Faraday asked surprised.

"Because we are family, and family stays together." Replied Vasquez.

"I've been on my own a long time, I don't know how to act around people for long." Confessed Faraday.

"We'll tell you if you are getting annoying." Joked Goody as Billy elbowed him in the ribs.

As everyone went back to sitting around the campfire, Faraday was unsure if he could fully trust these men, but he was surely willing to try, after all they were family.


End file.
